Public Land Sales under the Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act (FLTFA)

Lands Available for Sale

BLM may only sell public lands that have been identified as potentially suitable for disposal in an approved land use plan or through an amendment to an existing plan. In order for the disposal to be eligible under FLTFA, the plan or plan amendment must also have been approved prior to the passage of FLTFA on July 25, 2000.

To determine what lands have been identified as potentially suitable for disposal in a given area, please contact the BLM Field Office that has jurisdiction over the area. Interested parties may request that certain lands be put up for sale. However, even though lands may have been identified for potential disposal in a land use plan, there are still many procedural requirements that BLM must complete before the lands can be considered for sale. These processes and legal requirements can be costly and time consuming for BLM, and in some cases can result in a decision not to sell the public lands.

Method of Sale

Once BLM has cleared the lands for disposal, they will be offered to qualified interested parties through a competitive bidding process. The bidding process can include written sealed bidding or oral bidding, or a combination of both. In any case, the successful bidder will be required to submit no less than 1/5th of the total amount bid at the conclusion of the sale and the remainder of the bid amount within 180 days from the sale date.

Specific details of upcoming land sales will be provided in a Notice of Realty Action (NORA) published in the Federal Register and local newspaper at least 60 days in advance of a scheduled sale. Additional information on specific parcels may be obtained from our BLM Field Offices.